Last Exit to Springfield (11 Mar. 1993)

Homer becomes union leader and leads a company strike when Mr. Burns takes away the company dental plan.

Director:

Mark Kirkland

Writers:

Matt Groening (creator), James L. Brooks (developer),

Stars:

Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright

Cast

Episode cast overview:
Dan Castellaneta	...	Homer Simpson / Window Cleaner / Worker / Gummy Joe / Droopy-Voiced Man / Ringo / Monkey / Photographer / Grampa Simpson (voice)
Julie Kavner	...	Marge Simpson (voice)
Nancy Cartwright	...	Bart Simpson / Ralph Wiggum / Donut Woman / Quigley (voice)
Yeardley Smith	...	Lisa Simpson / Child at Dentist's (voice)
Hank Azaria	...	Movie Villain / Football Player / Dr. Wolff / Carl / Diamond Thief / Donut Man / George / Crusher / Bumblebee Man / Chief Wiggum / Robots (voice)
Harry Shearer	...	McBain / Mr. Burns / Smithers / Burns' Grandfather / Lenny / Wrestling Emcee / Paul / Goon / Principal Skinner / Kent Brockman (voice)
Joyce Brothers	...	Herself (voice) (as Dr. Joyce Brothers)

Storyline

Mr. Burns revokes the dental plan from the power plant's union contract, and when Homer realizes that he'll now have to pay for Lisa's new braces, he leads the power plant employees on a strike, while Mr. Burns struggles to put an end to the rioting.

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Plot Keywords:

strike | turned out pocket | 2d animation | dentist | dental braces

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Genres:

Animation | Comedy | Family

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 March 1993 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

20th Century Fox Television, Gracie Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

30 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

One of the jokes in this episode is that Bart and Homer watch a movie starring McBain (the Arnold Schwarzenegger parody in the series) where he busts out of an ice sculpture and utters the line "Ice to see you." In an intriguing case of "Life imitating Art" (or the series in this case), in 1997, Schwarzenegger would go on to star in Batman & Robin where he played the villain Mr. Freeze, who made a lot of ice-themed puns through the film, much like McBain did here.

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Goofs

The nitrous oxide cylinder at the end of the episode is marked N²O. Chemical formulas use subscript for numbers.

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Quotes

[Homer has a fudgesicle stuck to his back]
Homer: Hey Lenny, can you get this Sugar Daddy off my back?
Lenny: All right, but this is the last time!

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Connections

Spoofs The Godfather: Part II (1974)

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Soundtracks

"Classical Gas"
(uncredited)
Written by Mason Williams

User Reviews

"Hold Still While I Gas You"

This is the much hyped and Entertainment Weekly labeled "best Simpsons Episode Ever". Though I would not pick one Simpsons episode as "the best", this is deserves it's reputation. From the opening jokes about the union president (referencing Jimmy Hoffa) to Homer's epiphany ("Lisa needs braces"..."dental plan!"...etc.) to the large bird that looks like and laughs (?) like Mr. Burns, to Lisa playing "Classical Gas" at Lennie's request, this episode is brilliantly hilarious. Of course, nothing can top the insane dentist who accuses everyone of lying, shows Ralph the "Big Book of British Smiles" and shows Lisa the "poker" the "scraper" and "the gouger" so she won't be scared. And then...my personal favorite Simpsons line..."hold still while I gas you". The dentist was supposed to be voiced by Anthony Perkins, who unfortunately died shortly before they could get him.